Dominoes
by La Vita a Colori
Summary: In the midst of a heated battle, Naruto finds himself losing his mind. Sasuke, having gone into hiding after killing Itachi, finds Naruto and, on a whim, takes him in and tries to find some semblance of the person he used to know.


**A/N:** Characters don't belong to me. This will probably be an angsty, but romantic three or four shot. We'll see. :) Please R&R. Rated M for horror and later sexual conduct.

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_Fate is the thin, intimidating red string that cuts through your heart and winds its way into your soul until you are left gasping for air, with no other choice left but the follow. _

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'_Oh God, oh, God, oh God…_'

That was the repeated phrase twining its way through his mind as he pushed past trees and shrubbery, one arm grasping the other as he tried to contain his wound which, for reasons unknown to him in his state of mind, refused to mend. The bones were still cracked and the epidermis was torn and demolished, singeing along the edges and bleeding profusely. Why was he still bleeding?

'_Oh God, oh God, oh God, what have I done?_'

His breathing came in pants and the normally shining blonde hair was lax against his face covered in sweat and bile, dribbling one way then the next, depending on the movement of his body.

He needed to get away, faster, faster, faster.

He could barely feel the chakra signatures of his teammates anymore, his senses so distorted and raw, but he kept running. He couldn't—no, **wouldn't**—allow them to catch up to him. He would not let them subject him to their pity and to their scrutiny. He did not want to watch the way their mouths told him it was all right and that it was not his fault and watch how their eyes belied the truth.

He had done the worst.

He had almost hurt his teammate.

He had almost killed a _friend_.

He tsked slightly as the edge of his jacket caught on a passing branch, but he leapt to the side and landed in a small clearing, taking cover behind a large rock as he inhaled deeply, attempting to bypass the madness with pure, clean, clear air. His mind reeled as the pounding—that profound, unrelentingly angry drumming sound—continued to grow.

The blonde shook his hair out of his eyes, not pulling the hitai-ate up from where it had descended around his neck.

'_Oh God, oh fuck—God, I can't believe it._'

He shook slightly as the breeze passed, so soft in the wake of his horror, and tried to focus on sensing the others chakra. He had become swifter throughout the years and figured he had lost them somewhere in the wild of the forest, dispersing his clones left and right, sending his own chakra flowing in all different directions.

And yet, it was that very chakra that was going out of control.

He felt the pulsing beneath the seal on his stomach, black swirls flaring out in a mock salute, and the tension coming in flares although he had just enough control to drive it back down. It had been occurring for over a year now without fail, and Naruto had never suspected it to be much trouble as he had always been able to suppress the demon inside of him, fending him off through his own chakra control and sometimes willpower alone.

Yet, Naruto himself had been taken by surprised when the very scent of blood from the ninjas who had attacked his group set him off. When he had finally gained control of his wits, he was pounding a very disgruntled Shikamaru into the ground. He vaguely remembered Sakura running off to find Captain Yamato when Naruto had been able to pull himself back, though the spastic red chakra was flowing off him in waves in tandem with his own.

How was he able to see his own chakra?

That was inconceivable, right?

Unless the demon, with some strange, all-encompassing power, was seeping his own soul slowly into Naruto's? Binding them together in their basic makeup of mortal and immortal?

For a moment, all he had done was stare at Shikamaru, who was looking back at him with a controlled expression, though he could see the anxiety lurking there as if any sudden movement would set the monster aflame. For a moment, his vision had faded to black, and when he had come to, it was Kakashi-sensei attempting to calm him, to contain the problem until Yamato could get there with reinforcements.

He had never meant to hurt his team mate. He never wanted to cause a problem. Oh _God, _he had never wanted to see so much blood!

'_**But you do.**_' Was all Kyuubi had said, and then Naruto had screamed.

He had screamed and thrashed about; fighting against the demon whispering what could have been taken as sweet nothings into his brain. Instead they were filled with resentment and blood and distress. He grabbed at his hair and the dirt swirled around his feet with each pulse inside of him, small dust particles curling up and maintaining their limbo between the ground and the sky, floating in lieu of gravity.

"_Stay away!_" He had screamed viciously when Kakashi had taken a step towards him, and when his teacher had not listened, blue eyes deepened towards red and he repeated himself, voice gravely, "_I SAID STAY BACK!_" With that, he only had to swing his arm out in an arc and a wave of pure chakra was sent through the air, knocking both Shikamaru and Kakashi back a few meters, tree branches whining under the pressure.

Kakashi had righted himself first and hesitated, visible eye pinned to Naruto's.

"It's okay." He tried to whisper, to be affectionate, but it was to no avail.

The pounding had returned to his skull, starting at the base of his cerebellum and zapping between amongst synapses, and Naruto ran his fingernails through his scalp, raking down the back of his neck, causing welts to form as he screamed again.

A moment more and eyes faded back to pale blue, calmed enough to drink in his previous actions. He looked up in his moment of focus. "_Don't follow me! Stay away. I'll come back… Don't – just AGHHH!_" He gripped at his head again and with a loud crash, the earth beneath where Naruto had been standing cracked and he was finally able to make his escape, leaping up, up, up into the sky. How had he done that? He didn't know. He didn't care.

All h knew was he needed to get away.

Now, cowering in the darkness of a boulder in a clearing far from any of his native land, Naruto shook against himself, rocking back and forth on the heels of his feet. All his concentration was being used to fend off the demon, to prevent its goal and to block out that voice that sounded like crushing diamonds in the sand. All of his determination was being utilized to push back the darkness threatening to consume him.

He felt his own mind falter slightly and black seeped into his vision and a terror so frightening gripped at his innards.

What if this time he could not push it away?

What if this time, it was too much?

What if this was how things were meant to be?

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Not far off, a dark haired shinobi balanced precariously on a branch, eyes scanning the distance.

Oh yes, he had felt it.

That pulsing, mixing wave of chakra that could only belong to Naruto Uzumaki. It was swirling around the Kyuubi's own powerful stream, violently brushing against one another as they fought back and forth. And then it had exploded into a cacophony so immense that Sasuke reached a hand to steady himself against a large oak tree.

He traced it across the land until he came to ground himself on a branch in close proximity to the emanating source, masking his own chakra as not to disturb the other. A quick scan on the surrounding area told him there were no others within miles. The first wave had been from further off. Naruto had become quite fast.

His quiet steps brought him closer and closer, until he heard that hoarse screech of pain, pausing a moment in his steps and foot raised just above the ground.

And then, there was nothing.

The forest stood still once again, leave no longer rustling along the ground, and his eyes narrowed upon the source of the disturbance. He observed the other boy's strange posture, curled in on himself, balanced on tip-toes and scratching at the side of his head. Those normally vivid blue eyes were nearly lifeless and Sasuke approached slowly, noting how his presence was not even recognized when he came into Naruto's line of vision, eyes in line with shins clad in black.

His head tilted imperceptibly to the side as he looked over Naruto's ragged features. The blonde was shivering something fierce and Sasuke relaxed his hand on his blade, determining that Naruto was nowhere in his right mind to fight back. His chakra was weak, but somehow so was the Kyuubi's. His body was battered and it had Sasuke wondering slightly what type of battle he had been in. Curiosity peaked for the first time in a long while.

Stepping lightly, he pressed forward until he was standing in front of the black and orange mass, hidden and looking slightly blue in the shadow of the boulder.

When Naruto made no move to look in his direction, he knelt down in front of him, scanning the blonde's face and saw nothing but sheer terror inside his eyes. They were wide, glazed and utterly uncertain and Sasuke huffed faintly.

'_Pathetic_,' his mind supplied.

And yet, he found himself pause when Naruto's eyes finally caught his. It could have been a glimmer of a second and it could have been hours until he pulled his gaze away, only to hear the most dismal sound escape the blonde's lips.

He turned ebony orbs momentarily to the where the sound had emerged and back to meet imploring eyes and he instinctively reached forward to brush a piece of blonde hair off of Naruto's forehead. The slightest contact had Naruto shrinking back in on himself and Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"Dobe." He muttered, almost unknowingly.

Another pitiable sound and Sasuke moved closer until they were a hair's width apart as he searched the other's eyes, as if the proximity would give him the knowledge he required. Small twitches wracked Naruto's form and he looked on the verge of exhaustion. Sasuke carefully took one of Naruto's hands in his own, and, seeing as the other only momentarily pulled back before relenting in his fatigue, pulled it until Naruto's hand rested at the back of Sasuke's neck. He repeated this process with the other one and, once done, realized it made a strange picture.

"I'm not going to hurt you, moron." He tried for a harsh tone, but it came out quieter than intended, almost kind.

The blonde tensed for a moment and opened his mouth to say something, but only small unrecognizable sounds came out. He looked a little perturbed at his inability to speak for a moment before pressing forward suddenly, wrapping tan arms around Sasuke's neck and dug his face into a pale neck, seemingly intent on never letting go.

Sasuke let out a small sigh and looked down at the matted hair crusted with blood and dirt. Sure, he was annoyed, but the malice of his earlier years was no longer there. He had long ago killed his brother and when Madara had taken off to God knows where, he had settled to building himself an abode deep in the forest, away from any town or village—anywhere that might be called an _alliance_.

He was tired and wanted no part in that power play. With his desire to kill Itachi satiated, what else was there but to wait for death? He was still as talented a shinobi as ever and his team had continued with their support of his endeavors, going so far as to retrieve some valuables for him from within the Uchiha compound back in Konoha.

It had not been particularly difficult. He admitted that the Konoha ninja were good, but he had trained his team to be better.

A shudder from Naruto brought him back to the present, as well as the slightly touch of a chakra signal from others, gaining speed, mostly likely a search party for Naruto. He attempted to dislodge the other from himself, but, seeing as the blonde was in no mood to budge, easily lifted the thin frame up into his arms.

And then, they were away, into the thicket of the deep forest.

_These are strings; this is fate._


End file.
